Vermont Governor Jim Douglas shuns stimulus signs

Gov. Douglas and Tom Evslin (Vermont's chief recovery officer)have decided to shun the Federal Recovery signs that Sen. Judd Gregg earlier sought national legislation to ban. “Axe the Stimulus Plaques” Gregg said and declared them "Simply for political self interest “. He introduced a bill in the senate “that would have prohibited the use of stimulus funds for signs that say a project is being carried out using those funds.”
It seems Vermont will as Gregg desired forego the signage. The savings are small in context and the symbolism high. Vermont's Recovery Officer says

“here in Vermont we decided that we’d rather spend the stimulus highway dollars on roads than signs. We have lots of projects but we don’t have signs. Once I explain almost everyone agrees with this decision.”

For me this begs the question, would Jim Douglas stop his trademark aggressive ribbon cutting habits if it would save a few thousand dollars?

Obama’s Secretary of Transportation Ray Lahood(R) says of the signage "Signs tell a story, and the story being told is hard-earned taxpayer dollars are being spent to rebuild roads, resurface roads, resurface bridges,".

I agree we should proudly display what our tax dollars are doing for us.
The new Federal Recovery logo and sign compare favorably to the Blue Eagle of the depression era National Recovery Act. It is a visible symbol of what good government can do on a practical local level .The signs were to be posted for transparency and so the people that drive the roads know how and where their tax stimulus dollars are being used .They were to be the visible symbol of America back on the move. Florida, Texas and Virginia have not put up the stimulus signs.
Tom Evslin Vermont's chief recovery officer claims the signs cost $1500 each and you need at least two for each project. The exact form for the sign and the ARRA (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) logo are spelled out in federal guidelines along with a”recommendation” that the signs be displayed. The Federal Highway Administration designed the recovery act signs in two sizes. Given the scope of the projects overall and the small savings in this seems petty. It has been reported that the cost of the signs can vary depending on size some running as much as the New York state behemoth of 84 square feet(about the same as three sheets of plywood )and costing $6,000 to $8,000 each to the diminutive and reasonably priced Illinois sign at about 45.5 square feet and costing $300.00.

Other Signs
Criticism of Vermont stimulus transparency from Vermont's Times Argus newspaper about two weeks ago .

Philip Mattera, lead author of "Show Us the Stimulus: An Evaluation of State Government Recovery Act Web Sites. said " Vermont does a serviceable job of explaining in what government sectors the recovery money is being spent. What the Web site does not do, he says, is offer a geographical breakdown of where in the state that money is being spent.
"And that would be useful to know, so people can know how available money is distributed in different parts of the state," he says. "And there's no information up there about specific projects that are being planned with the money."

Senator Gregg your name here….

…….and here and here
When President Obama unveiled the ARRA American Recovery and Reinvestment Act logo in March ,as the stimulus funds first entered the food chain he said "These emblems are symbols of our commitment to you, the American people — a commitment to investing your tax dollars wisely, to put Americans to work doing the work that needs to be done. So when you see them on projects that your tax dollars made possible, let it be a reminder that our government — your government — is doing its part to put the economy back on the road of recovery."

The signs show that our tax dollars are at work for us. Many Republican and of course Democratic governors across the country have not been shy about putting up the ARRA signage at highway bridge and paving projects but now with the program rolling along and with the successful completion of some of the earliest projects New Hampshire Sen. Judd Gregg has decided he doesn't like the signage or the publicity they bring to the recovery projects .He seems to be pulling a full Granite State pennywise routine on this issue after looking so foolish earlier in the year with his back and forth on the Secretary of Commerce job in the Obama administration and newspaper reports of personal profiting from real estate investments at the former Pease Air force base redevelopment.

DOVER NH —

U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg wants to ax the plaques, as in those highway signs alerting motorists to work being done thanks to the federal stimulus package.

He said the signs do nothing except let lawmakers "pat themselves on the back" about passing the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The New Hampshire Republican said the legislation, which he opposed, has been a "disappointment" and costs in excess of $1 trillion.

Gregg filed legislation this week to prohibit the use of stimulus funds for signs that advertise taxpayer spending.

Senator Gregg does have more than passing knowledge of how to pat ones self on ones own back.

– Gregg earmarked$500,000 in federal money to Plymouth State University for the “Judd Gregg Meteorology Institute.”

– “Gregg Hall” at the University of New Hampshire was dedicated after Gregg secured $266million in federal funds for the university.

– “The Judd Gregg Library” was dedicated after Gregg secured $150,000 for the Nasua Policy Athletic League.

Commerce as usual

The senate has a narrow definition of conflict of interest.Threading the needle .

The scale and the finesse are perhaps different but here are the same basic ethical moves of Blagojevich dressed up in a conservative New England suit.

The reason Senator Judd Gregg's bi-partisan ardor suddenly wilted may not have been formed in the conservative conscience he claimed to have suddenly remembered possessing . After removing his name from consideration to the cabinet post and trying to explain his change of heart on the stimulus bill Gregg said in an interview that the stimulus should focus more on how we control real estate values .A subject he appears to be familiar with ."I have said I think we need to put more targeted effort on the real estate side, where we balance and basically look at how we control the price of real estate, so people have more confidence in the value of their home."

In New Hampshire the former Pease Air force base closure brought some opportunities to Judd Gregg and appears to have done well for his brother .His brother Cyrus is a partner in a company called Two International Group that has built a dozen buildings at the former base since it closed and was re-purposed .Brother Cyrus is said to be a major player at the base

Reports say that he(Sen.Gregg) collected from investments at the former base $240,017 to $651,801 at the same time arranging for federal aid to the former base of $66million.

Gregg's investments in the partnerships date back at least to 1999, when he had $15,001 to $50,000 invested in 222 International Drive LP, according to his Senate reports....By 2007, Gregg had a total of $465,000 to $1.05 million invested in four businesses: 222 International Drive LP, Say Pease LLC, Say Pease II/IV LLC and Say Pease VII LRC, according to his most recent Senate report."I've throughout my entire lifetime been involved in my family's businesses and that's just the way our family works," he said. "We support each other and our activities."

By putting government money into the former base, Gregg helped it become a desirable place for employers to locate, making developments there more valuable.

Said Senator Gregg .."I am absolutely sure that in every way I've complied with the ethics rules of the Senate both literally and in their spirit relative to any investment that I've made anywhere," Say Pease ,indeed

In an interesting but not directly related transaction ....................

Two International also develops properties elsewhere in Portsmouth, recently selling a $1 million-plus condominium at its One Harbor Place development to J. Bonnie Newman, Judd Gregg's former chief of staff. Gregg agreed to become commerce secretary if the Democratic New Hampshire governor named her to succeed him.

http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/02/12/1793330.aspx

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